And walter j



Dec. 30; 1924. 1,521.276

E. U. CAVE ET AL APPARATUS FOR COALING LOCOMOTIVES 3 SheetsSheet 1.

Filed July 19, 1921 UNL 0A DING TRACK CQALI N G F;

Dec. '30, r924. 1,521,276

E. U. CAVE ET AL KP PAHATUS FOR COALING LOCOMOTIVES Filed July 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS Glam/. UCLA 4 w, ,1; t W

Dec. 30, 1924. 1,521,276-

E. U. CAVE ET AL APPARATUS FOR COALING LOCOMOTIVES -"nnted Dec. 36, 1924.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD U. CAVE, 0; LANCASTER, OHIO, AND WALTER J. BLENKO, O'F PITTSBURGH.

PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGIE'ORS, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE FAIR-FIELD EN GINEEBING (30., 0F MARION, OHIO, A CORPORATlON 0F OHIO APPARATUS FOR CGALING LGiIGMOTIVES.

Application filed July 19, 1921.

l nirl'ivld and jilk'fliliyll y, respectively, and

iivi. y, have. illVCTilQAl :1. rim and usclul .lm isrovmenl in Appuriiiw or Coaling Low- :uoiIu-s; :unl we do hurvlvy declare the following Lo be :1 full, dear, :llhl exact descrifr inn thnruol'.

)ur invvntiou reluius; to methods and appurutus i'or transferring nrilcrial from one railway if: r to another, and has special ref i-rvnm: lo COZlllIlg logoniotire tenders and unloading hadmrdvr can.

(lire objevt of our inwmion iii to provide an improved ilIhl simply method of transferring material from om} riiili'vuy vehicle to an ther without. the use, f storage him; or minimal labor.

Another olijor-t, oi our invention is to provide novel and Ollizflih; manna for curryng ilw llll v"lf'lllili iltiQil .uilwtliod inlo mill-vi, eon-h apparatus rom 'ri'. .ing, in gcnurnl, two railway tracks, as pil lm rel umler one (If the inn-ks, :1 iuwlisini iul louder located in the pit und operating in a direction trans;- rc-rse to lhu Ulflillfi, and a mocl'ianical ela- 'v'illOl disposed hoiwew lhr; trucks and 01 fl'ilflllg to I'HK'lVQ the material from thG fm'ider, to convey it upwardly and in a din-ution more or less; parallel to the tracks, and. finally to discharge the material (li roctly inlo the la-mlvr or Minn: vehicle to be loaded.

A further object of our invention is to proviilv lli|})l'()V!'(l menus for controlling and ope-ruling the lrlivvry (lllltlh of loading upun'zuiu-i mill {or Flllllitll EHHPOSOIQ,

llvvry railway yiml w uipuwnt must inclcuhzlrrungvnu-nlsi for cording locomotive lrnilers. iUHl llw univi-rsizl vrzu-liro has her-r toi'orn lWBIl lo y-roviilo largo sbinfzigu llll'iS which are kept, iillvd will: uiul uml in which ill! liINll'l'SlH'i brought for :zmillng. Thuso installations urv wry iqwi'isivr mid there fonuh" lovutwl lm 1,25 0 l-lmi, ity is mu iilly neccse'mry to n. i "i loi'z ii'iivi'iw :i i ufishlPrublo rlirslumr mow. Hun if V mih Thu P084, (if coal 7 means is grant :;--i tenders by h and -i;ii L V6 in) g,

Serial No. 485,873.

mom is a considerable saving in time as compared with hand loading, very busy railway yards; must. keep more locouiolives in service than are actually required, on 211':- vount of the inlays invidiznt to recouling.

iiccoriling to our present inventinn we lliSPil'lil i. lhi: aim-age bins eniirvly, un l "9 icl w. iozil info (hi: locomotii'e lenalvis (lira-oily l'roiii the ours in which the cnal is raw-in 6 ihv yards. For thinpurposc we prim/iii Eilw'lmjlll'ill unh iulcr, 11in col'isiruction (if whirl w y lm with as i commonly llll'll in :iiiir-r liiii ir ol' uuloiiolin F npomtions, the ni'iviilly of muprzrsient met rod and app l'lll ll rwiiling in tho :ipplicalfon of such a, lomlrr 1o :runsefnr of material from: our railway (3:11 ilireutl y to another. Since our new iiistzilhiiions; in relatively very in (:xpmwiro. srvm'ui oouling'stations may he (Hl2ll)ll;-'l\i l in rwry railway yard, so thril no loroiuotii'a will have to run any great (ll-ii2ll "i 1o 2;. wailing point when it. is new j to rvplarnish the trnilirr.

.uu-ozn 'izinying drawing shows the; ;f(i!i(ifill wmgmnvnt of u loading; in iii)l" -il'illl("\'l in :i -'i:oil:ni ':v with our inven- N. Fig. i is: 2!. plain vivw of he entire iuslullziilon: Fig. :4 in u vorlicul sectional xiow, Hm srrlion lining tulwn on tho linu 2 -2, lug. i, Fig. "l is a side olm'iitii'mal viuw ml the rom'uyor, showing tho rolulion of the vhutv lo the vlvvutor, llw transfer pit being shown in si'eclion on the lino .l-il. Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is ii frugnivntury side eluvw tionzil v z-w showing; the clinic lorking (luvii-n: iilll'l l-igi 5 a plan Vl(\ of the lo k-- ins: (lrvi-yr shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 1 shows lwo purullvl Hlltl adjacent, railway tljm'lts, lhv lllllilklfll 2 indicutin r the lll'll )2l lill1llSHlL uml thrnunwrul 3 inrl irnt ing (in: cooling truck. A pit 4. having downwardly Cun\vi';llll;,{ sirlu and (mi walls, is lm-niugl honi-uih [ho unloiuling track 2, Jillllllllll'flll huh-r is lociitml in the pit l, lhi; l'i'wilor livingshown conventionally sinco its: (lUUillS oi ironslrur-t ou form no part of my {H' 'SQHt inwnlion. The fender ii (liS- vhargmi through :1 short". lution:iry vhute ll into a lmpg'wr "T ourriml. h l l .imw. YNllQSS rum hurlzsh $1 iii and :-:i=;iporwi rm \UHY :i- 'i. n( rzi'vulivn i5; ii nd. will: ltii: ls-hula: o! xonrtrnzfiioii (ill - mg member the elevating portion of this conveyor and further description of this elevator is therefore omitted.

At the upper end ot' the elevator is a guide hopper 12 which delivers theco'al or other material into an inclined chute 13 which is rotatably supported on a standard 11 and is braced by means of a horizontal bar 15, the outer end of which is attached to the chute 13 while the inner end is provided with a fitting 16 that loosely surrounds the standard 14. i

In order to normally hold the chute 1.3 in. line with the elevator frame 8, we provide a novel form of locking device, the details of which are best shown in Figs. 3, 4 and This locking device consists of a U-shaped lock member 20 having trunnions 21 by means of which the lock member 20 is pivotally supported in a bearing member 22 at the foot of the standard '14. Counterweights 23 are attached to or made integral with the free ends of the U-shaped lock member 20 and these counterweights tend to lift the intermediate portion 01' bight of the lock member. The upper surfaces of both arms of the lock member 20 are inclined upwardly, shown at 24-, and are cut away, providing a central recess which, when the chute is in the full-line position shown in Fig. 1. receives the bar and thus locks the chute in this position.

.Adjacent to the notch 25 the lock menr ber is provided with a flat projection 26 upon which rests the T-shaped head 27 of a rod 28 which is loosely separated from the bar 15 by means of straps 29. The, outer end of the rod 28 is bent, as shown at 30, and is provided with a ring 31 for convenient operation. When the rod ,28 is rotated on its axis in either direction its head 27 depresses the projection 2(i/and so brings the locking member 20 below the bar 15, thus releasing the chute and permitting it to be swung in either direction. When the chute is returned to the full line position shown in Fig. 1 the bar 15 slides along one of the curved upper surfaces 24 of the lock 20 and when the bar 15 reaches the notch the counterweights 2f; raise the locking member and cause it to engage and hold the bar 15 in the notch 25.

The elevator is preferably driven by elec tric power where current is available. In that case the main control switches are located in a box on the frame of the elevator in a position convenient to the operator on the ground. An auxiliary push button control is mounted on the swinging chute, as indicated at 33 on the drawing, where it can easily be reached by the man on the tender or car, enablin him to start or stop the machine t will without descending to the ground.

lVhen the installation described above is operated to coal a locomotive tender, a hopper-bottom car is run upon a track 2and is placed over the pit 4-, such a car being shown at 35 on Fig. 2, and the tender 36 to be coaled is run upon the coaling track 3 and is stopped in such a position that the chute 13 can be swung over the tender. The fireman senses the ring 31 with his bar and pulls it toward him, thereby rocking the rod 28 and releasing the locking device in the manner des ribed above. With the same movement, be swings the chute over the tender and the coal is dumped from the car 35 into the pit -1 is transferred by the feeder 5 into the hopper t3, and thence is raised by the elevator and discharged through the chute. 1; into the tender. When sullicient coal has een loaded into the tender the feeder and elevator are stopped by means of the push-button control at 33, and the fireman swings the chute back into its normal position where it caught and held by the locking device. This whole operation consumes only a few minutes and, as stated above. coaling stations of this kind may be located at any convenient intervals so that any locomotive can be coaled without loss of time.

The hopper beneath the coal car permits the accumulation there of sutlicient coal to fill a locomotive tender without attention during the loading process. One type of installation uow impractical use has a capacity of one ton per minute, the operation being' practically automatic and depending only on free running of coal from the car.

It is to be particularly observed that very little space is required for this equipment, the maximum width of space required for the elevator when placed parallel to the tracts being ti feet. Where wider track spacing makes it desirable, however, the elevator can be set at an angle to the feeder from 90 to 180 and in either direction.

\Ve have described our method and ap. paratus in connection with the coaling of locomotive tenders because this is the ap lication of our invention Where the most striking' economies are effected and where the departure from the previous practice is most marked. However, our invention is not confined to this particular use, but may also be employed for transferring any kind of loose material from one railway car to another. Such transfers of material are often necessary when a car containing gravel, coal, ore, or any other loose material hecomes damaged and it is desired to transfer the load from the bad-order car to a good car. In such cases it has heretofore been the practice to change the material from one car to another by hand shoveling. sometimes issisted by ivoted chutes or the like set up between tie cars. Such a method of transfer consumes at least a working day for one car, and in the case of material that is dillicult to handle, may even consume two days, thus involving both delay and expens By our present invention the load is transferred from a had-order car to a good car in a few minutes, the bad-order car being placed above the feeder, like the car shovn in Fig. 2. and,v the good car being placed in proper position, like the lender ll, on Fig.

5y this means manual labor is almost entirely eliminated and with one man to clean the our 1; eat system is capable of transferring 2m to tons per hour, and in many cases more, depending on the kind of material being handled. Congestion of had-order cars in yards and, along sittings is thus in'unediately relieved when our system is installed.

'lhe rhute lfl may he swung in either dircrticn from its intermediatr position shown in Fig. lso that the tender or other car lo he loaded may be placed upon-the track 2 instead of upon the track 3. This makes it possible not only to install our invention where only one coaling track is available, but also makes it possible to coal two. locomotivcs or load two railway cars in rapid --u -rcssion, the two tenders or cars to be loaded being opposite to each other on the tracks and 3 and the chute if} being wrung first into position to load one car and then swung around into position to load the other car.

The economies which we have ell'evlmd material from the said elevator and to deliver the said material into a car on the adjacent track.

Apparatus for transferring material from a railway canto a lo omotive tender or other car,= comprising two adjacent and substantially parallel railway tracks. a pil beneath one ofsaid tracks, an im-lini-d cndless conveyor disposed between the said tracks and extending in the same general direction as said tracks, a feeder in said pit reciprocating transversely to said trails a d adapted to transfer n'ialerial from mid pit to said elevator, and n chute for'dclin-iing theniatcrial from said clerator into a car on the adjacent track.

4. Apparatus for transferring material from a railway car to a locomotive tender or other car, comprising two adjacent railway tracks, a pit beneallroue, of said tracks,

an inclined endless mnreyer disposed he tween the said tracks, a feeder in said pit reciprocating transversely to said tracks and adapted to transfer material from said pit to said elevator, and a chute for deliverimg the material from said elevator into a car on the adjacent track, the said chute being hoth in the cost of initial installation and the time and expense of operation-will be evident. from the foregoing description. It will he understood that our invention is not restricted to the use of any. particular type or construction of" feeding or elevating apparatus. the scope of our invention being limited only hy the appended claims.

Vi e claim as our'invention:

1. Apparatus for transferring material frornia railway car to a locomotive tenderor other carcomprising two adjacent railway tracks, a pit beneath one ofsaid tracks. a second pit disposed between said tracks, means for transferring the material from said first pit into said scwnd pit, a conveyor between the adjacent tracks communicating with said second pit and arranged at right angles to the direction of feed of said transferring means for elevating the material, and means for discharging the said material into thereceiving car.

3. Apparatus for transferring material from a railway car to a locomotive tender on other car, comprising two adjacent railway tracks, a pit beneath one of said tracks, a. feeder in said pit reciprocating in a direci013 transverse to said tracks, an endless ,-1-lc, ator disposed between the said tracks pirotally attached to the upper end of the said elevator.

Apparatus for transferring material from a railway car to a locomotive tender or other car, comprising two adjacent railway tracks, a pit beneath one of said tracks, an inclined endless conveyor disposed hetween the said tracks and extending in the same general direction as said tracks, a feeder in said pit reciprocating transverse ly to said tracks and adapted to transfer material from said pit to said elevator, a chute for delivering the material from said elevator into a car on the adjacent trees. the said chute being pivotally attached to the upper end of the said elevator, and means for lot-1+ .ing the said chute in a position parallel with said tracks.

(3. Loading and unloading apparatus comprising a horizontally swinging conveyer and means for locking the said conveyer in a given position, the said locking means comprising a lock member pivoted on a horizontal axis adjacent to the vertical axis of said swinging member, a: counterweight normally holding the said lock member in locking engagement with a portion of said swinging member, and means for simultaneously-depressing said lock member and swinging said swinging member.

7. Loading and unloading ap,';aratus-cmnprising a horizontally swinging chute and means for locking the said chute in a given position, the said locking n'ieans comprising a U-shaped lock member pivoted on a horizontal axis adjacent to the vertical axis of said chute, and having alocking recess, counterweights attached to the free ends of said U-shaped lock member and normally holding the said locking recess in engagement with a portion of the said chute, a projection carried by said lock member adjacent to said notch. a rod carried by said chute and having' a T-sliaped head resting on said projection, and means for turning the said rod and for thereby depressing, the said lock member and releasing said chute.

8. Apparatus for transferring material from a railway car to a locomotive tender or other car comprising two adjacent railway tracks, a conveyor disposed between said tracks, means for receiving material from a car on one of said tracks and for feeding said material to said conveyor, and a chute disposed to receive material from the said conveyer and to discharge said material into a car upon either of said tracks.

9. Apparatus for transferring material from a railway car to a locomotive tender or othercar comprising two adjacent raiI- way tracks, an inclined conveyor disposed wholly between said'tracks and extending generally parallel thereto, means for receiving material from a car on one of said tracks and for feeding said material to said way tracks at substantially the same level,.a'

pit beneath one of said tracks, a second pit beneath and between said tracks, means for transferring material from the said first pit into the said second pit. a conveyor disposed at right angles to the feed of said transtel-ring means and wholly between said tracks for elevating the material from sec ond pit, and means for discharging the said material into a car on the adjacent track.

In testimony whereof, I the said Eowmm ll. CAVE, have hereunto set my hand.

ED\VARD U. CAVE.

\Vitnesses 'lnncv H. Smmwoon, \Vn. ll. Bra-2mm.

In testimony whereof, I the said WALTER J. BLENKo, have hereunto set my hand.

WALTER J. BLENKO.

\Vitnesses:

JOHN F. WILL, 'Enrrn K. FREESE. 

